Kazeem woke up with a cold sweat as always. Having vivid dreams about dying wasn’t something he could ever get used to, especially when the more loops he passed the more vivid they became. Although still blurry, he could feel the heat from the flame hotter than the last time, as if his back were turned toward a raging fire. His mom’s yelling was slightly clearer.
“...O!!!!”
Then he felt something piercing him again. The pain was also more vivid and… hotter? Kazeem always woke up right after getting hit in the back, and the hit became more realistic as time went by. This time the pain felt sharper, more precise. Before waking up he could feel his body growing slightly warmer. The details were extremely subtle, but Kazeem was familiar enough with the dream to notice even the smallest anomaly.
After catching his breath, he let out a long sigh and opened the small notebook hidden under his pillow.
Inside the little book were many things. The different rules of the loop that Kazeem had discovered, the experiments he did to test them, the punishments he suffered after defying them, and how he felt after following them. There were also the different scenes he had tried to change.
The injured scavenger. (success)
The merchant fight. 1st attempt (fail)
Stopping mom from stepping out (fail)
The kid falling (fail)
The piece of scrap falling from the old man’s cart (fail)
The merchant fight. 2nd attempt (fail)
...(fail)
...(fail)
... the merchant fight 7th attempt (success)
...(fail)
...(fail)
...
...(success)
After writing about his success in passing the last loop, he sighed. He had spent more days than necessary in this one to study Old Meza, but he felt that it was worth it.
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
Kazeem then looked at all the pages he had filled until now. Each failure represented a day he had to spend trapped in a loop until he finally succeeded and moved forward.
There were times when he wondered if all of this was simply a dream, or if he had just gone insane and locked himself inside his own mind. Sometimes he even laughed quietly at the thought.
But the hunger gnawing at his mind and slowly eating away at his spirit always brought him back to reality.
So he wrote.
Not only to plan each day better, but also to keep the last bit of sanity he had left. Seeing his writing disappear the next day — or remain in the book — was what prepared him mentally to face whatever came next.
While going through the notes he came across an experiment he had done a few days ago.
He had tried to stay awake to see how the loop rewound.
The result?
He simply found himself back in his bed.
The outcome was so obvious that he felt embarrassed for even trying something like that. Still, he knew that if he wanted answers he had to test everything himself. So he planned to continue experimenting whenever the opportunity appeared.
After writing the new details of his macabre dream, he turned to a new page and wrote today’s objectives.
Training with paa
Study with maa
He paused for a moment.
There was something he had been wondering about for a while, but he hadn’t found the right moment to test it.
What happened to the rusty blade I picked up in the trench? It seemed like I “ate” it… but how? Why? And can I do it again? If so, under what conditions?
Knock knock.
“SON! Get out!”
Kazeem suddenly heard a thunderous knock on his door, almost immediately followed by Zokou’s deep voice.
Startled, he quickly pulled on some pants and opened the door.
Zokou was sitting in the living room reading some documents, surely given to him by Drah. Hearing his son’s footsteps, he calmly placed the papers on the table and stood up.
“Tie your hair in a ponytail. Then run,” he said as he entered the kitchen to prepare breakfast.
“Run? From where to where?”
“From here to the market.”
Kazeem sighed in relief.
Walking to the market normally took almost an hour, but although he wasn’t used to training, Kazeem had inherited a part of his father’s strength. It shouldn’t be too difficult.
He was about to open the main door and start running when he heard:
“And start over.”
An ominous premonition suddenly hit him.
Slowly, he turned his head toward Zokou.
“…How many times?” he asked with an imploring smile.
Zokou, holding a cup of coffee and wearing a small smirk, replied:
“Until.”
“Until what…?” Kazeem asked desperately.
But he was only greeted by a sinister smile.
Until he is satisfied…
Kazeem already knew.
He was used to his father’s sadism by now, and he knew negotiation wasn’t an option.
Before stepping outside he glanced at the clock on the wall.
“6:10… sigh. Let’s do it.”
~~~~~~~
Run , run ... and after running ? Why think about it ? Keep running
